


Motivation (Or: Jonathan Storm Does Not Know How To Study)

by aldreikynn



Category: Marvel Ultimate Universe
Genre: M/M, Mutual Pining, peter and johnny being LOSERS, sad teens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2017-02-20
Packaged: 2018-09-25 17:31:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9834674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aldreikynn/pseuds/aldreikynn
Summary: “You’ve lived with Susan Storm your entire life and you don’t know the difference between a covalent and an ionic bond.” Peter stared Johnny down. Johnny sat across from him at the foot of his bed with a notebook in his lap. Johnny just looked at Peter expectantly, a lazy smile on his face. Peter exhaled deeply. “I don’t believe that. You’re lying to me so I’ll do your homework.”“You know I’m not above that, but this time I literally promise you I have no idea what’s going on.”(Peter helps Johnny study for a test. Kind of.)





	

“I think that I deserve a medal for going through freshman hallway to come see you,” Johnny said, leaning against a closed locker next to Peter’s. “They all smell like Axe body spray and they just… They just stand right in the way! Like they don’t know they’re in a goddamn hallway!”  
  
“That’s freshmen for you, I guess,” Peter kind of laughed. “High school is fun like that.”  
  
“I didn’t miss it, that’s all I’ll say.” Johnny ran his hand through his hair and smiled. “So… I need some help with studying for a chem test. I never, ever ask for help, but this is just kicking my ass so bad. And you’re, like, maybe the third smartest person I’ve ever met.”  
  
Peter pulled his backpack out of his locker. “Third?”  
  
“Reed and Sue. Not necessarily in that order.”  
  
“That’s fair.” Peter smirked, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. “I’ll take third.” The two of them walked down the hallway, now mostly empty a few minutes after the bell rang to signal the end of the day.  
  
“But for real. Chemistry. I need to do this tonight, so like… I don’t know. Hold me captive in your room until I’ll be able to scrape by with a B. My grades are tanking so bad.” The doors of the school were propped open, a steady trickle of students still flowing out of them. Johnny kicked a small chip of concrete as he and Peter walked down the short steps a few feet from the door.  
  
“Good plan. You know, I would have helped you sooner if you’d have asked.”  
  
“Asking for help isn’t really my thing, I guess.” Johnny shrugged.  
  
“But you’re doing it now. When you’re already screwed.” Peter made a face at Johnny. “I don’t mean this in a bad way, but you’re an idiot.”  
  
“Guilty as charged. But it’s whatever. I don’t need to be a genius, that’s never been my game. I just work on having people like me. The rest doesn’t matter that much.”  
  
“I get that, I guess. Why worry about high school when you can light yourself on fire and fly and stuff?”  
  
“I could ask you the same question.” Johnny paused. “Well. With a few details edited. As far as I know, you can’t light yourself on fire. Or fly in the conventional sense of the word.”  
  
“What other sense is there?”  
  
“You remember that part from Toy Story? ‘Falling with style’? You do that,” Johnny said, laughing a little.  
  
“I guess you’re right,” Peter said. Peter looked at the boy walking next to him.  
  
He didn’t know how exactly to describe Johnny. He didn’t want to say he was hot, because, like, ew, Johnny Storm, but he was objectively attractive. His hair looked crazy soft. He had nice cheekbones, a little beauty mark on his left cheek, and a perfect smile. Peter would have to settle for calling him “sorta okay, I guess”. You know. If anyone ever asked.  
  
____  
  
“You’ve lived with Susan Storm your entire life and you don’t know the difference between a covalent and an ionic bond.” Peter stared Johnny down. Johnny sat across from him at the foot of his bed with a notebook in his lap. Johnny just looked at Peter expectantly, a lazy smile on his face. Peter exhaled deeply. “I don’t believe that. You’re lying to me so I’ll do your homework.”  
  
“You know I’m not above that, but this time I literally promise you I have no idea what’s going on.” Johnny peeked at one of the notecards sitting next to him in a stack. “I take good notes. I don’t know why I’m missing this.”  
  
“Let me see that,” Peter grumbled, pulling the notebook in Johnny’s lap towards him. Predictably, doodles in the margins bled into the chicken scratch of Johnny’s notes. He’d drawn some robots and stuff that were admittedly pretty dope, but Peter wouldn’t say it out loud. They were supposed to be studying, dammit. “Okay. I’m sure there’s actually stuff you were supposed to be learning in class buried in here somewhere.”  
  
“I’m... actually not quite sure. I’ve kinda been blowing this chapter off because it’s all stuff I learned freshman year, like, no big deal.” Johnny shrugged. “I’ve had other things to worry about inbetween now and then though, so… Hm.”  
  
“I take it that somewhere along the way you forgot basic chemistry.”  
  
Johnny stared blankly at Peter, same dumb smile on his face, scratching the back of his neck. “Yeah.”  
  
“Alright. What’s the last thing you remember?” Peter stretched, flipping through Johnny’s doodle-covered notebook.  
  
“I told you already that I take good notes, like, I know everything up to what’s been covered in class. So just go from, like, what we started working on Tuesday.”  
  
“I don’t have your chem class. I take AP.”  
  
“I take AP,” Johnny mocked, making a face.  
  
“It sucks, for the record. We get so much goddamn homework. Do you know how hard it is to try to maintain a decent GPA while also being Spider-Man? Like, it would be one thing if I didn’t have to go to school, but Peter Parker needs to have a normal inconspicuous life.”  
  
“Yeah, yeah. So can you tell me what the difference is or not? Ionic and covalent bonds. Please explain, mighty AP science god,” Johnny said dramatically.  
  
Peter rolled his eyes. “God, why do I put up with you.”  
  
Johnny smirked. “Cause you love me,” he said with a singsongy lilt. He leaned in towards Peter. “Tell me I’m wrong.”  
  
“Ew, no way.” Peter laughed, sticking his tongue out and pushing Johnny away. “Gross. You smell like a freakin’ bonfire, dude.”  
  
“Is that supposed to be an insult? Bonfires smell awesome,” Johnny said, laying down on the bed, his head right next to Peter. “Okay, well. You smell like dirt.”  
  
“I do not smell like dirt,” Peter said defensively, swatting Johnny on the shoulder.  
  
“Yes you do, dude.”  
  
“That’s such a lie. You’re a liar.” Peter shifted indignantly. “I use strawberry shampoo. I smell like strawberries.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“Here, smell.” Peter dangled his head over Johnny’s. His mid-length hair brushed Johnny’s nose. “Strawberries.”  
  
“Huh. I guess you’re right.” Johnny looked up at Peter, the other boy’s face only about a foot away from his own. He found himself staring, then blushing, then hoping to God that Peter wouldn’t notice him trying not to smile. Johnny looked away, biting his lip.  
  
Peter sat back upright. “So… Atoms?” he said stiffly.  
  
“Right. Yeah. Okay.” Johnny sat up, too, scooting back to the foot of the bed and laying on his belly, facing Peter. If Johnny were able to actually be paying attention, hopefully he’d appreciate that Peter actually knew what he was talking about and was explaining it very concisely and helpfully. However, the only thing he could focus on was Peter’s face. Johnny always thought Peter looked cute, like, just objectively, he had a nice face and soft lips and a cute nose, but he was noticing all kinds of things he hadn’t caught before. He made this little face where his nose scrunched up when he was trying to remember something, he had this habit of wringing his hands and just sort of moving them around when he was talking, he had a light dusting of freckles up his arms, he...  
  
Oh no.  
  
“Johnny? Are you understanding this at all?” Peter waved his hand in front of Johnny's face.  
  
“Yeah! Yes." Johnny nodded. "Every word.”  
  
Throughout the past few minutes, while he was delivering an uninterrupted lecture about chemical bonding of all things, Johnny Storm was being kicked swiftly in the ass by his huge, painful, stupid crush on Peter Parker. Johnny found himself inching closer to Peter. The other boy noticed quickly, his eyes widening as he turned to see Johnny laying next to him again.  
  
“You good?” Peter said, his eyebrows furrowing.  
  
“Yeah, yeah. Sorry, uh… Sorry. I get the bondage stuff now. Thanks.”  
  
“Bonding.”  
  
“ _Bonding_ ,” Johnny said quickly. Jesus Christ almighty. “That. Yeah. God.”  
  
“Are you sure you’re okay? You’re acting kind of weird, dude.”  
  
Johnny looked up again, melting as his gaze fell on Peter’s eyes. “Don’t freak out,” Johnny whispered.  
  
“Don’t freak out?” Johnny sat up next to Peter, his heart pounding out of his chest. He reached for Peter’s hand. “What’s wrong, Johnny?” Peter said, cocking his head. Johnny’s fingers brushed the top of Peter's hand and he shivered, his body going rigid.  
  
“Um.. Is this okay?” Johnny whispered as he pulled Peter in closer, locking their fingers together.  
  
“I… Yeah. Wow. Yeah.” Peter stammered.  
  
“Please don’t hate me for this,” Johnny breathed. Slowly, quietly, he kissed Peter on the cheek. He pulled away and exhaled sharply. “Shit. I’m… I’m sorry.” Johnny looked down at the bedsheets, eyes wide. “Forget I did that. Sorry.”  
  
“Don’t be.” Peter sat still, pressing his hand to his cheek gently. “A warning would have been nice, but… Is that how you feel?”  
  
“I, um… Yes? Yeah. Sorry.”  
  
“Damn. Alright,” Peter laughed, running his hand through his hair. “That’s… Damn.”  
  
“You can kill me now, if you want.” Johnny closed his eyes and raised his hands in surrender.  
  
Peter paused. “No way. I mean… I could complain that that was a little forward, but… Hm. I’ll just start with ‘I think you’re hot.’”  
  
“You… I mean, that isn’t surprising. It’s just a fact. Literally and figuratively.”  
  
“I hate you.”  
  
“I hate myself more, I promise. But… Sorry, I can’t tell if I’m reading this wrong or what. You like me back?”  
  
“If I didn’t I probably would have punched you in the face when you tried to move on me.”  
  
“Touché, I guess.” Johnny shrugged. “So, uh… This is so awkward. I’m sorry. I made this really awkward.”  
  
Peter laughed. “Can we do it again?”  
  
“...What?”  
  
“Kiss me, Johnny.” Peter grabbed the other boy by the wrist, pulling him in close. “It’s okay.”  
  
“Hell. Yes,” Johnny whispered to himself. He put his hands on Peter’s waist, pressing his lips to Peter’s forehead, then down to the tip of his nose, then to his lips. They were just as soft as they looked. Johnny pushed Peter down onto the bed and couldn’t help but freak out a little bit about how he was actually making out with Spider-Man. Who gets to make out with _Spider-Man_? Johnny did, apparently, which kicked so much ass it wasn’t even funny. He wondered for a fleeting moment if Peter was freaking out about the Human Torch making out with him, but in fairness, the Human Torch makes out with everyone, so, uh...  
  
Peter totally was. Less about the Human Torch part, but damn, the _Johnny_ part. Johnny was so warm and his hands were so soft and _goddamn_ was he good with his tongue. Admittedly, now, Johnny was a little bit hotter than “sorta okay, I guess.” Peter rested his hands on Johnny’s shoulders, melting into the kiss with his whole body.

  
Johnny pulled back for a moment to breathe. “God. You’re so cute, Peter. I’m gonna die. I’m dying for real. You’re perfect,” he said quickly, grinning from ear to ear.  
  
“Shut up, you dork.” Peter laughed, swatting Johnny on the shoulder. “I’m like, a 6 at best. You’re a 10.”  
  
Johnny made a face. “You’re not. Wrong? As far as a hot scale goes. I’m a solid ten. You’re... somewhere higher than a six. Maybe a seven?”  
  
“I can’t figure out how to react to that,” Peter said. “Thank you?”  
  
“You’re welcome.” Johnny smirked. “Can we get back to kissing?”  
  
“Y’know, I’ve never kissed a guy before. Have you?” Peter smiled as he dodged a peck on the cheek from Johnny.  
  
“Yeah. None of them were as cute as you, though.” Johnny leaned in again, but Peter placed his palm on his face gently and looked away.  
  
“That’s surprising to me, if I’m a seven. Mister ‘solid ten’ can’t score any guys higher than a seven, settles for geeky study buddy and kinda-roommate.”  
  
“Stop it. I’m gonna die. Let me kiss you, you dork.” Johnny’s voice was muffled by Peter’s hand.  
  
“Okay, okay,” Peter laughed. He moved his hand to Johnny’s jaw, cupping his face gently and kissing him on the forehead. “After we study."  
  
"You are _cruel,_ " Johnny whined.  
  
"You asked me to keep you here until you can scrape by with a B. This is my motivational tool now. Ten minutes and I'll kiss you again."  
  
"...Fine. But you suck."  
  
"You love me," Peter said, smirking.  
  
"Yeah. I do. But you still suck."  
  
  
\---  
  
(Johnny actually ends up with a high B on his chemistry test. He decides that he should study like this more often.)

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm not dead. I'm just really bad at writing consistently. Comments appreciated! Thanks for reading ^u^


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